Chapter 13 Husband Bankruptcy

It is not uncommon for a married couple to consider filing bankruptcy, but question whether or not both the Husband and Wife have to file. It may be a situation where one (ex. the Husband) has debts which must be dealt with while the other (ex. the Wife) is financially sound. So, is there such a thing as "Chapter 13 Husband Bankruptcy"? The answer is yes!

While it is really not called "Chapter 13 Husband Bankruptcy", it is possible for a Husband to file bankruptcy under Chapter 13 by himself. Bankruptcy law does not require that both a Husband and Wife file jointly.

Even though only the Husband is filing bankruptcy, the income and expenses of the Wife are required when the Husband files, so that the bankruptcy court, the trustee and creditors can evaluate the household's financial position to determine if the Husband qualifies for bankruptcy.

The Wife will need to disclose:

1. All of her creditors as well as the amount that she owes each creditor and the basis for which she owes each creditor.

2. The source and amount of her income as well as how often she is paid.

3. All of her property.

4. All of her monthly expenses such as food, housing, utilities, taxes, transportation, medical, medicine, business, etc.

Several aspects of a Chapter 13 bankruptcy are affected by a person's household financial position including, but not limited to, the length of time for the payment plan and the eligibility of the debtor. For an accurate picture, the Wife's information has to be included. However, the Wife is not a party to the Chapter 13 bankruptcy and is not bound by the bankruptcy.

It should be noted that if the Wife's financial status changes during the bankruptcy, the change needs to be reported to the trustee as it can change or affect the Husband's bankruptcy.

This is general information. If you need specific information or have any questions of any nature whatsoever, talk with a lawyer licensed in your state.

For more general information, see Bankruptcy. For more detailed information see Chapter 13 bankruptcy.

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